It is the responsibility
of every taxi driver, car driver, bus driver or even private driver (like you)
who is involved at any point of time transporting the passenger from one place
to another to check their Iqamas. These passengers can be your customers (in
case of taxi driver) or your relatives who are going at some place with you. If
they are not carrying Iqama or Iqama they are carrying has been expired a while
ago, you cannot legally carry them to any place within the Kingdom. You can
just excuse them because there are heavy penalties imposed on the person who is
involved in transporting the illegal resident from one place to another. A
resident with expired Iqama will be treated as illegal resident.

Penalties
on the Transporter of Illegal Residents

For the first instance the
carrier fine is SR 15,000 and one month imprisonment.

Second instance fine is SR 30,000 and three months imprisonment.

Third instance fine is SR 1000,000 and six months imprisonment.

The maximum fine which has been imposed to one person so far is SR 675,000/- Saudi Gazette

Fines are multiplied
according to the number of individuals involved.

If the carrier is an
expatriate resident, his Iqama shall be terminated and he shall be deported to
his country after the application of the penalty taken against him.

Means of land transport
shall be confiscated in case of repeating violation, whether such means were
owned by the carrier, the accessory or the colluding party.

As you can read above, a
small mistake can end your bright career in Saudi Arabia. The source of
information of the above penalties is Ministry of Interior website. You can
check about it yourself. However, it is important to mention here that this
penalty and other provision will apply only if the expatriate is living in
Saudi Arabia illegally. If someone’s Iqama is valid but he does not have Iqama
at the time of checking, it is a different case. He will be fined with SR 1,000
to SR 3,000 in that case. Recommended: SR
3,000 Fine and deportation for not carrying Iqama

How
to avoid such situations?

It is better to check the
Iqama of the expatriates you are transporting from one city to another if you
are a professional driver.

If you are private driver,
it is suggested to at least ask from all the persons you are transporting about
the validity and availability of your Iqama. Please keep in mind that a small
mistake can lead to deportation.

It seems unethical but it
is my advice to not to give lift to anyone you don’t know.